Alex Maritz, Swinburne University of Technology

University and research

Dear John and Susan
It was good to see you in Canberra yesterday, thank you for the informative forum.
I did raise the point yesterday, but would like to make a submission regarding entrepreneurship and self-employment for people with disabilities.
I include a proposed (draft) abstract in this regard:

Disability impacts a large number op people and affects a wide range of socioeconomic outcomes, including labour market participation. Towards supporting the active participation of people with disabilities in society and the economy, this paper aims to explore the role of disability entrepreneurship and self-employment. There is some international evidence that targeted inclusive entrepreneurship initiatives; training and support programs can be effective for disabled people to participate in self-employment activities. As a first of its kind, this study is the first to examine this phenomenon in Australia. We explore self-employment activity among disabled people, provide benefits and challenges of entrepreneurship for people with disabilities, and propose policy recommendations. Overall, this relatively unexplored issue of national priority requires additional empirical research, enabling policy and decision makers to make informed decisions to enhance labour market participation through entrepreneurship and self-employment.

I’ll touch base again soon.
Best Regards

Alex Maritz
Swinburne University of Technology